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been its inability to tell the
world its side of the story.
When a mob of uncontrolled
teen-agers run amok down a
main street, threaten Arab
shopkeepers to close up their
stores, build barricades and
burn tires in the middle of the
street, and pelt the law-
enforcement agencies with a
shower of stones, what are the
policemen supposed to do? In-
vite them in for a cup of tea?
Suggest that they divert their
energy into friendly com-
petitive sports like tennis and
cricket? Turn tail and run
away, abandoning civil life to
the rioters?
To those countries which
have been most severe in
their criticism of Israel in re-
cent weeks, do we not have
the right to ask: How do you
put down riots which get out
of hand precisely because the
mobs know that the police
and soldiers have been told to
avert bloodshed at all costs?
How did the U.S. put down
the Detroit riots in 1967,
when 43 were killed?
Israel's soldiers are not
storm troopers and not
sadists. They are citizens
from all walks of life — blue
collar and white collar
workers, farmers, students —
serving their stint in the
country's defense forces.
Their job is to maintain order
for the protection of all. To say
"We want a
Palestinian state
over the whole of
Palestine."
that they are murderously in-
clined as they attack innocent
people is a dastardly libel,
and every Jew overseas who
has even for a moment been
misled by the pictures taken
at the wrong moment, detach-
ed from logical reality, should
be ashamed of his doubts and
accusations.
Much has been made of an
unfortunate statement by
Defense Minister Yitzhak
Rabin, who was quoted as
urging that street violence be
put down by "beatings." As a
matter of fact, it is standard
procedure for police depart-
ments in every country to use
clubs in overcoming violent
rioters. Did any newspaper
bother to report Israel's strict
policy in this regard? "No
beatings take place after
Arab rioters have been ap-
prehended and after a
demonstration is over. There
is no such thing as beating for
beating's sake, or beating as
a punishment." This, despite
propagandistic claims to the
contrary.
It would appear that the
Arabs in Gaza and elsewhere
don't want us there. Very well,
then why don't we get out?
Let's put things in proper
perspective. In 1947-48, when
the Jews were assigned a lit-
tle strip of the original
Palestine to be a Jewish state,
the Arab countries ganged up
and tried to prevent the
establishment of Israel. They
didn't want us then, even in
Aviv.
In the years that followed,
and right down to 1967, long
before we occupied Judea,
Samaria and Gaza, were
there not constant murderous
attacks on Israeli civilians?
The answer, I think, is told
tersely and dramatically in
the Jerusalem Post. Its Arab
affairs editor, Yehuda Litani,
whose sympathies for the
Arab cause are evident in
almost everything he writes,
interviewed one Abd El-
Nasser from Nusseirat
refugee camp. The Arab said
that the last 40 days at his
camp were "very hard,
especialy because of the harsh
reaction of your soliders. They
were merciless and cruel."
And a colleague of his added:
"We are ready to suffer — but
we won't give up. This wave of
unrest will continua"
And what then, Litani ask-
ed him. "Do you want an in-
dependent Palestinian state
in the Gaza Strip and the
West Bank?"
"No," he answered. "We
want a Palestinian state over
the whole of Palestine — not
only in the territories, but
also in Haifa, Acre and Jaffa."
There was nothing new in
what he said. These views
have been voiced frequently.
This is not a case of fighting
Israeli oppression. It is a bat-
tle to extinguish Israel, and to
drive the Jews into the sea.
Most Israelis understand this.
Do the Jews abroad? There
are still some pathetic
Israelis who believe that by
yielding to the Arabs and ap-
peasing them, we can have
"peace in our time," to use a
phrase last used in 1938.
In the Talpiot section of
Jerusalem, Judy Segal's
home was attacked by a gang
of about 50 rock-throwing
Arab youths. Windows were
smashed. And Judy told the
press: "I'm leftist in my
thinking. My sympathies are
with Peace Now, but it's
easier to be a leftist when peo-
ple aren't throwing stones at
you."
There's a message in that
for Jews abroad. Before you
judge Israel by the distorted
television and press reports,
remember that it's easy to be
critical when violent mobs
are not throwing stones at
you.
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